Australia
by Starcat000
Summary: Australia was a small, usually forgotten, country located at, what could be considered, the bottom of the world. He had never really been involved in any wars or conflict so when World War One hit he had no idea what he was getting into. Slightly AU *New and improved
1. Australia

Summary: Australia was a small, usually forgotten, country located at, what could be considered, the bottom of the world. He had never really been involved in any wars or conflict so when World War One hit he had no idea what he was getting into.

*Note . No offence is meant by this fic

. Sorry about any spelling and grammar mistakes

Disclaimer: I obviously don't own Hetalia

**Chapter 1-Australia**

Australia lay flat under the thick wattle bush, trying to escape the heat of yet another scorching day which and coupled with current humidity everything was that little bit more uncomfortable. There was nothing more annoying than being hot and having all his clothes stick to him like glue. Australia released a long breath, humming absently to himself; despite his disagreement with the climate, he still loved his land all the same. As he peered through the bracken at the mottled blue sky he quelled an urge to chase a dragonfly that zipped past. Not only was it far to hot to be running around, he was also way to old to be chasing dragonflies, being a proper country for the past few years. So what if he was technically a commonwealth of England and could still be considered a colony, he didn't care, he barely saw England these days anyway. Yet in the recesses of his mind he knew he would do anything to gain England's favour. It was often very lonely in his section of the world as he hardly saw any of the other countries, naively hoping that after being declared a country he would receive more attention. He loved meeting new people, going to new places, seeing new animals maybe even gaining a little more independence, so he did not have to rely on just England for information and trading. However, nothing had changed; he was still isolated, in what was considered the bottom of the world. Stuck in a vast, dry land with his closest contacts being the small Asian countries sitting above him, wanting nothing to do with one of England's colonies. Moreover, he in turn was being constantly warned by England not to socialize with them. It made making new friends problematic at the best of times. He closed his eyes, enjoying the sounds of the bush around him and fiddling with the dull brown Band-Aid that ran across the bridge of his nose.

To say he bared a resemblance to England would be an understatement. He had the same color hair, which was only marginally longer, same green eyes and pale complexion, though he did tan easier. Trade mark eyebrows were what really marked him as England's relative, although they thankfully weren't nearly as thick as England's. Australia couldn't decide if he was proud of this resemblances or annoyed. When it came to his relationship with his mother country (_that's what Australian's used to call England_) Australia couldn't quite figure out where he stood, wanting to be both independent and recognized at the same time. If he asked a psychologist they would probably blame it on his troubled childhood.

Australia had never been the most well behaved child, no scratch that, he'd been downright unbearable as a kid. England had constantly been trying to keep him out of trouble. If it wasn't painting on walls it was climbing on furniture, sliding down bannisters, leaving mess wherever he went or running around naked (which had always horrified England). Not even mentioning his little habit of stealing random items from most people who came anywhere near him. He had liked to call it extended borrowing; after all, he did always try to remember to return the items. This had always tested England's patience as bad behavior may be tiresome but stealing was morally wrong. Australia remembered many a lecture about the virtues of right from wrong, shrugging at England's angry questions and knowing deep down that his behavior was a cry for attention. England's attention had been a bit diverted during that period, mostly likely due the American Revolution, which was in full swing. England had been stressed and emotionally strained. Australia had been young and starved for attention. It was an explosive combination that would only end in tears. His unexpected arrival and wild behavior only icing to the, already crowded, cake. Australia didn't know a lot about his origins except that he had apparently been found, quite unexpectedly, by England next to a gum tree in an unknown and unexplored island in the Pacific. England hadn't stayed long on the land, now known as Australia, deciding to take him back to England to teach him the English way. It had gone south from there, starting with the rinse and repeat cycle of learning English customs, doing stupid things to get attention, facing England's disappointed wrath and dealing with the following punishments. England assigned him more study material then left him alone to oversee other important matters. Rinse and repeat.

It had probably been this tiring cycle in correlation with other numerous factors which had led to what was and still is the worst day of his life. The day he left England and officially became the colony Australia.

Flashback-1788

Australia stood crying on the soft sand beach, dwarfed by the eleven large Galleons (_large transport ships of the era_) that were moored offshore in a sheltered bay. On these ships were what would be Australia's first white settlers. His people. This would be his land. But he didn't want people, he didn't want to be a country, island, colony, settlement or whatever he was. He wanted to stay with England in their home in England. For the third time in a row Australia ran after England's retreating form.

"Please don't go, don't leave me" Australia cried, catching up to England and latching onto his arm, pulling at his clothes. England gave him an irritated and exasperated look, trying unsuccessfully to shake the child from his arm.

"It's time you took some responsibility and started running your own country" England responded while prying Australia's small fingers from his sleeve.

"It will be a positive experience for you and hopefully will rid you of your nasty thieving habit" England ground out, managing to detach Australia from his arm.

"I promise I'll be good, I'll be good, I promise, I promise," Australia's voice rose in volume and pitch as England attempted to drag him back to his previous location.

"Don't leave" Australia was now wailing at a deafening level, causing England to wince. With a reserved sigh England gave up on dragging the child and slung Australia over his shoulder. Australia continued to cry his 'don't leave' manta, trying to wiggle out of England's grip. Why was England being so mean, why was he leaving him? Hadn't England said that he would look after him? That he was his older brother. What had he had done wrong? Ok, so he had 'borrowed' a decorated pin that had belonged to the queen, but he had done a lot worse. Why did he suddenly need to learn responsibility? Australia didn't want to be alone.

England finally reached Australia's original position, one that he had had to drag Australia back to numerous times over the past few minuets. Gently placing the crying Australia down on the ground England knelt in front of him, trying to get the child's attention.

"Australia?" England spoke in a calm, commanding voice. However, he ignored England in favor of staring at his shoes and sobbing, tears making this shoes blurry. "Australia" Australia continued to cry at his shoes. "Australia, look at me" Australia raised his head. Tearful green eyes meeting England's darker ones.

"Australia, you can't keep living the way you do. No more stealing, no more bad behavior. Your a country now. You need to learn responsibility." Australia gave a loud sniff before wailing "But I don't want responsibility, I don't want to be a country" Ignoring England attempts at calming him in favor of renewed cries. Life was unfair.

Finally, England clapped a hand over his mouth saying, "Well too bad, you are one. Now don't interrupt me when I trying to tell you something," taking a moment to calm himself, England took a deep breath before he continued in a softer tone "I know you do not want to be alone and you're afraid but there is nothing to worry about, I have thought of everything you will need"

He continued crying, eyes searching England's face, some part of him hoped that this was all a joke and they would go home and things would return to normal.

"Now I need you to be strong and stay here. I promise I'll contact you as much as possible. However, this country is very much out of the way so messages might take a while to get here." England placed a hand on Australia's head.

"I will be in England if you need me" Australia guessed this was supposed to be reassuring but all it did was reinforce the colossal distance that would now separate them.

"You understand, right?" Australia hesitantly nodded, whimpering slightly. England gave a strained smile before pulling Australia into a hug that only served to make him sadder. England pulled out of the hug both hands on either of Australia's shoulders. Australia looked desperately at England, at a loss for words. For a moment he thought he saw England's eyes glisten as if about to cry.

"Good luck" and with that England got up and once again made the trip along the beach to a small rowboat waiting to take him out to his personal ship. Australia stood, stunned at the abrupt exit, watching England's retreating back.

Panic began to well up inside him, bursting into a fresh set of tears he ran down the beach after England, yelling "nooooooooo, don't go, don't go, don't go"

Australia reached the waters edge, wading after the rowboat- which was quickly moving away- stopping at waist depth. A wave smacked him in the face, giving him a mouthful of salt water. Australia watched as England's boat became smaller in the distance before it disappeared all together.

End Flash back

Australia jolted as he resurfaced from his depressing memories, realizing that the sun, which had previously been high overhead, was heading towards the horizon. He shivered, feeling cold despite the heat, reminiscing about memories best left buried in the subconscious always left him on edge. He would prove to England that he was worthy of recognition and attention. No longer enjoying or feeling inclined to continue his afternoon nap Australia got up and stretched. Lazily he began to meander through the scrub, attempting to shake lingering dark thoughts from his mind. A strong sea breeze blew over him bringing the taste of ocean and relief from the heat. Australia scrambled over a boulder, heading in the direction of the cliffs, which he knew overlooked a magnificent ocean. He had made it a habit lately of watching the sun set from this particular point. As Australia pushed though the last of the bracken he spotted a familiar figure silhouetted against the sky.

Australia's face split into a grin as he loudly hollered a greeting at the still figure.

"Hey New Zealand."

New Zealand jumped at the sudden noise, head snapping in Australia's direction, I slight frown on his face.

"Hey" Australia was now vigorously waving at him, a stupid gin plastered all over his face, talking with New Zealand always calmed his nerves.

"Hey, mate, what're you doing out here" Australia continued to yell as he quickly made his way towards New Zealand.

New Zealand was a heavier build in comparison to Australia who was more thin and wiry. New Zealand had dark skin and dark brown, shoulder length hair which lay flat across his head. His only obvious connection to England being his English eyebrows. Across his face was an odd tattoo design. New Zealand had always been very in touch with his original inhabitants, the Maori. These days he was a mish mash of England and the original land before English settlement. Though they never really talked about it, native people was always a touchy subject, especially for Australia.

"Has anyone ever told you your too loud?" sighed New Zealand, rolling his eyes and fixing Australia with a bemused stare. Australia grinned, leaping over a low-lying shrub and joining New Zealand at the edge of the cliff.

"I was under the impression that the rest of the world was too quiet," Australia stated, his smile doubling in size. New Zealand raised an eyebrow at the Aussie's cheesy answer, smiling in return before turning to once again face the ocean. Australia also turned to face the water, which spread out like a deep blue blanket to the horizon. He idly noted that the surf was rather flat that afternoon. A quick movement flashed in his peripheral vision, catching his attention. He moved his eyes to focus on the point, hoping catch whatever had moved. Nothing happened, frowning slightly he searched the waters surface.

"Whales" Australia eyes flickered to New Zealand in confusion

"What?"

"There are whales out to sea" New Zealand was now smiling.

Australia hummed, "Whales, right." Another silenced stretched out between them.

"Your tense, you haven't been receiving tax increases from England again have you?" Australia shrugged in response. Once again New Zealand displayed his uncanny knack for perceiving his state of mind.

"Naa, just tired." It was a bad excuse considering he was know for sleeping but New Zealand excepted the reason with a side long glance. Once again silence rained and Austrlia got the feeling that he wasn't the only one with troubled thoughts. New Zealand wasn't usually this quite as they would have usually stricken up a conversation all started a friendly argument by now.

"Soooo," Australia decided to brake the contemplative silence, "not that I don't love it when you visit, but why are you here?." Australia paused to look at New Zealand with a frown.

" Weren't you scheduled to visit next mouth… and don't say it was because of the whales"

New Zealand gave him a withering smile, "Can't a guy visit his best friend spontaneously without judgment these days," Rolling his eyes, Australia childishly stuck out his tong, fixing New Zealand with a glare.

"No"

New Zealand gave Australia a quizzical look that told Australia that he was missing a vital snippet of information, bluntly stating, "There's a meeting between our Prim Ministers today".

Australia's eyes widened in surprise "Really!" he could have sworn that was next month. Oh well, missing out on a conference/ meeting wasn't the end of the world. He had never had a keen interest in his county's political situation anyway, being content with knowing just enough to get by. His parliament was heavily regulated by England anyway so he never saw much of a point in it.

"Actually, we're supposed to be there for the meeting. I was sent to find you" Australia's heart sank at the words. Great just great. The last thing he wanted to do was go to a stuffy meeting where he was expected to know all about the topics covered when in reality he was completely clueless. It wouldn't be the first time he'd have to bluff the superior knowledge he was expected to know as his country's personification.

Australia groaned out loud" Do we have to go, it's so boring, all they do is talk and talk." Australia waved his hands in the air for affect, continuing "Usually about doing stuff that never gets done anyway"

New Zealand smirked, "I thought you'd say that, which is why I didn't put a whole lot of effort into finding you. The meeting is probably almost over by now so there's not much point in going "

The sentence invoked a relived sigh from Australia who smiled. "You're a good mate you know" There was a small silence as Australia thought.

"So, what do you think the meeting was about?"

New Zealand rolled eyes, "Well since neither of as went I can only speculate that it was about the situation in Europe. But this is only a guess gained from prior research for this exact meeting "

Australia ignored New Zealand's jibe, " Yes, I see your heat broken at not being able to use gathered information" he laughed humorously, humming to himself as his face becoming serious.

"It's getting worse isn't it" Australia finally commented, his face now a frown.

New Zealand nodded, answering, "Tensions are rising between the European countries. Their all building up their armies"

Australia once again lapsed into thought. He knew that there was some serious shit going down across the sea. He could feel it. There was tension across his country. The whole world seemed to be holding it's breath. The source of the unrest seemed to be the European counties. France and Germany had never gotten along well especially since Germany took the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine and now England was also in conflict with Germany. England was afraid that Germany's navy would cut him off from his empire, which also had Australia quite worried as he relied a lot on England. That wasn't the end of it. As far as he knew Russia and Austria-Hungary were also competing for land, adding to that was a bunch of smaller countries also gearing up for conflict. It was a ticking bomb waiting to go off with the only result being War. Australia had never really been in a war before so his future and the future of his country was completely unknown. He was worried about himself, New Zealand and England who was in the thick of it.

"A storm is coming" Austria looked out to sea, spotting the dark clouds on the horizon. He had a feeling that New Zealand wasn't just referring to the weather.

History

1770: Captain James Cook lands on the more hospitable east coast of Australia and claims it for Britain. England finds Australia.

1788: First fleet arrives in Australia and a British settlement is set up. The area was called New South Wales. Basically the first settlers were all convicts sent to Australia because, to put it simply, England ran out of space. So Australia in this fic is like a convict. Stealing anything was a pretty big crime back then.

1901: Australia becomes the Commonwealth of Australia but still relies heavily on England and English rule. Australians during that time basically still considered themselves subjects of Britten.

*Note: Don't worry I didn't forget about the Aboriginals. I'm addressing that in the next chapter.


	2. War

Chapter 2- War

_Flash Back_

The bush was quiet, save for the sound of cicadas and Australia's loud rustling as his small form trudged through bracken, dragging his heaving musket behind him. Australia gave an irritated huff as he walked through yet another spider web. Testily pulling the web off his face he flicked the offending spider off his shoulder. He had figured out a while ago that most of the dangerous spiders lived on the ground, making walking through webs annoying but probably not life threatening. Australia took a deep breath, feeling beads of sweat gather on his forehead. He decided to stop and rest, considering it to be far too hot to be walking around in his oversized English uniform. He had gone for a walk in an attempt to clear his head of his most pressing problem, that of trying to farm in a hot arid country. The English method of farming simply didn't work here, causing him endless headaches as crops died due to drought, flooding and extreme temperature. The walk had turned out to be a bad idea as he was now lost, making his bad day even worse. For the thousandth time he wished England were here to tell him what to do and save him from all his problems.

Australia found a log to sit on and he proceeded to flop down upon it, dropping his musket to the ground and taking his blue, buttoned waistcoat off. This whole adventure had been one disaster after another, making him feel miserable and downtrodden. He was terrible at looking after his country. He wished England would come back.

A small breeze ruffled his hair, causing Australia to look up and scream. There in the trees was the darkest man he had ever seen in his entire life. Australia gave a shout and fell backwards off the log, hitting his head on the ground. How long had that man been watching him?

"Yahh, that hurt" Australia rubbed his head, getting up and carefully eyeing the stranger. He inched towards his fallen musket, despite it not being loaded it still made a good weapon, but was halted when the man spoke.

"What are you doing?" Australia stood frozen in confusion at the question, taking the time to study the stranger. He was tall and very old. Wrinkles seemed to cover his entire face, extenuating the odd white symbols draw across it.

" You are disrespecting the land. You can not continue."

This line only served to confuse Australia further. Who was this man? What did he mean by that? Then it suddenly dawned on him, he could understand this strange man ever thought he definitely wasn't English and now that he was focused on the mans worlds he realized that he certainly wasn't speaking English. Transcending language barriers was a skill all country personifications possessed.

"You're the original Australia!" even though he barley believed his own words, still entertaining the thought that it was perhaps a different country, he knew in his heart that his statement was true. This thought made him queasy, the original Australia? What did that make him then?

" We must work together or you will have to leave" The aggressive tone made Australia tense up and resume his mission of inching closer to his musket. This land was his. England had said so. Who did this stranger think was. He would show England that he was worth his time. He wasn't just a bother to be thrown away. He would show England what he could do. As if reading his expression the man's face grew dark and he took a step forward.

Australia quickly lunged for his musket grabbing it and twirling around to thrust it at the man. The stranger darted to the side in an impressive display of speed despite his age, thrusting a spear in Australia's direction. Australia threw himself to the side, hitting the dirt with a heavy thud, the spear hammering into the space where his torso had been moments before. As quickly as he could Australia scrambled to his feet and bolted into the bush, stumbling over an exposed root in his haste.

The trees flashed past and Australia, ducked under a branch to catch his breath, fear coursing through is body. The man had been a lot faster than expected. He quickly began to fiddle with the horn he kept gunpowder in, in an effort to load his musket. Australia, catching a flicker of swift movement, had seconds to react as the man leapt out of the tree nearest to him. The man landed in a crouch as Australia rolled away from his previous position, desperately trying to take aim. The next movement was a blur. He didn't know who moved first. The man lunged and Australia yelled, holding his hands up to protect his face. The sound of a discharged shot echoed through the forest, silencing even the cicadas. There was a grunt followed by the sound of footsteps staggering away. A searing pain hit Australia the same moment he noticed a liquid running down his face. Australia raised his hand, feeing the deep cut running across the bridge of his nose that was bleeding profusely. An inch from his eyes and sunken into a large paper bark tree was a quivering spear.

_End Flashback_

Australia woke to the crash of his body hitting his boarded floor, groaning he rolled over clutching his head, which had hit the bedside table on the way down. Outside a crash of thunder made Australia jerk in fright, hitting the back of his head once again on his table. The widow panes around him rattled as rain pelted down upon them. Australia frowned at the sticky wetness that seemed to cover his face, thinking that his glass of water must have fallen on him during his restless sleep. However, pulling his hand away from his face, it was hard to mistake the substance as blood, even in the dark light of his room. The usually thin scar that lined his nose had opened and was now covering him in blood. Australia cursed and stumbled to his feet, staggering across the dark ground and into his washroom. There he took stock of his appearance in his mirror, scowling at the cut across his nose, which was now covering his face in blood. He pulled a towel from the pile beside the sink and held it over his nose. Lightning flashed followed by the roll of thunder.

A loud knock sounded that definitely wasn't thunder. Australia stared incredulously in the direction of his front door. Who in their right mind would be visiting at this hour and in this weather? Perhaps he had imaged it. The knocking returned this time slightly frantic. Australia cursed and moved towards the door, tripping over his shirt, which was lying in the middle of the floor. He reached for the light switch, throwing open the door and snapping at the unfortunate man who graced his doorstep.

"What?"

The man, who was soaking wet, jumped at his sudden appearance and seemed to freeze at the sight of the shirtless Aussie holding a bloodied towel to his face.

"Well" Australia snapped.

The man's next words were drowned out by another crash of thunder.

Now yelling the man began his message again "Excuse me but I have, but I have an important message for you" a second bout of thunder drowned out the rest of his sentence.

Australia sighed, " Oh hurry up and come in already." The man gave a grateful smile and rushed through the open door as Australia stood to one side.

Once inside that man began to speak in a rather rushed manner. "Sorry about the inconvenience. Its nice to make your acquaintance, I am Paul Anderson and I have an important summons…" Australia cut him off. "I'm not interested. Whatever they want can wait…" But Anderson continued on determinedly ignoring the interruption. " I have a letter from the Prime Minister, he says you have to come…Mr…?" Anderson looked down at the letter he was carrying with a frown.

Australia snatched the letter from his hand, taking note that it only stated his address but not his name and it was indeed from the Prime Minister. He thrust the letter back at the startled Anderson. A letter from the Prime Minister meant serious business that he couldn't wiggle out of, coupled with the fact that he was being summoned at one in the morning and during a storm no less, Australia knew that whatever was going on in his country was vitally important.

"Call me Steve. Wait here for a minute, I need to get a shirt." Australia spun around and headed off towards his room. Anderson was left standing awkwardly at the door. Australia felt apprehension swirl within him, wondering what was so important. He didn't feel any different. If any major disaster had happened in his country he would know right away.

Australia rushed into his room, snagging the shirt off the floor on his way through, pulling it on. He quickly moved into the washroom, stopping to slap a bandage over his nose before he turned around and moved into his bedroom where he rummaged around for his overcoat. Taking a moment to give himself a once over he decided that the Prime Minister would just have to deal with his scruffy appearance.

When he reunited with Anderson the rain had picked up and was now accompanied by gale force winds, ensuring that by the time the two of them reached the waiting car they were thoroughly drenched. A rather long (Australia didn't live near the city so it took ages to get anywhere) awkward car ride later and the two of them were standing outside parliament house.

Stepping out of the car Australia looked up at parliament house, it was kind of ugly and small; he would need to fix that at some point. The scuffle of feet at his side prompted him to turn around and see that Anderson had followed him out of the car, bringing his attention to the rain that continued to soak him. Squinting up at the brightening sky he decided that he might as well go inside and find out what all the fuss was about.

The moment he entered the foyer Australia could already feel the tension. People were bustling around talking nervously and there seemed to be excitement in the air. Australia shook himself, spraying annoyed passer-bys with water and adding to the growing puddle that had collected under his feet. As he eyed the body of hyper people milling around his trepidation grew. What ever had happened had spurred the usually sleepy parliament into a furry of activity.

"Mr Steve" Australia turned to Anderson who was pulling on his sleeve, following him quickly up the marble stairs towards the Prime Minister's office.

On entering the office Australia was greeted with the sight of Prime Minister Joseph Cook standing dramatically near the window his back facing them. After waiting for a few seconds, probably for added dramatic effect, Cook noticed them and turned around from his position, walking to his desk.

"So glad that you could finally make it to one of our meetings." Australia frowned in irritation at Cook's comment. Cook and him had never gotten along well. Australia knew subconsciously that he probably wouldn't be Prime Minster for much longer, however, that did not make him any less annoying.

" Nice to see you too" was his sarcastic reply "Say, is it just me your do have less hair every time I see you"

Both of them fell into silence, glaring at each other before a small cough towards the door reminded Australia of Anderson's presence. "Not that I want to interrupt but am I permitted to leave"

The Prime Minister made a shooing motion with his hand and Anderson turned to Australia "Well it was nice to make you acquaintance, until we meet again then Mr Steve" Anderson smiled shaking Australia's hand, wiping wet hair off his face with the other.

Australia smiled back "Yeah, same here and just call me Steve. Mr Steve sounds weird"

After once again exchanging smiles he watched as Anderson hurried out, shutting the wooden oak door behind him. Australia turned back towards the Prime Minister, observing that unlike before he now had a serious look on his face.

Joseph Cook began speaking again "As you can probably tell your presence isn't the only thing different about this meeting. Grave news has just come and I need your opinion before I make any decision as this will effect the whole of Australia."

Australia raised an eyebrow. This was bigger than he had imagined if Cook was asking for his opinion. Usually most decisions that the Australian government made had to be approved by the Governor General and English government, making his opinion rather redundant.

Australia sighed, " Stop beating round the bush. Has somebody died? Don't tell me it was New Zealand. Was it England? Is he hurt?"

"Slow down. No one has died, though this does concern England." Australia made to interrupt again but was silenced as Cook raised his hand.

"On the 4th of August, Germany invaded neutral Belgium. Though this seems to not affect us. This act was made more severe by the fact that Germany is now officially at war with both Russia and France. England has promised to help Belgium keep his neutrality and help Russia and France, meaning that as of this moment England is also at war with Germany."

What? The long explanation and subject caught him off guard. England had of course been in wars before but it was obvious from the tone of Cook's voice and the fact that this war had been brewing for a while that this time was different.

Cook rifled around in his jacket pulling out a telegram and handing it to Australia.

Australia glanced over it, heart jumping when he saw that it was from England

"When the empire is at war, so also is Australia"

The dramatic statement made Australia looked up from glancing at the telegram, startled at how close Cooks face now was to his.

Australia frowned, taking a few steps back to regain his personal space. Cook definitely had a flare for the dramatic, he had probably been practicing that line for hours. Jokes aside this was important. From the quick look at the telegram, he had picked up on England's request for soldiers, meaning he was asking Australia to go to war with him.

This was a big decision to be made on the spur of the moment at five in the morning. But he knew that very soon Joseph Cook would have to sit through a parliament session about this new development. It was obvious that Cook supported joining England and wanted his backing. He didn't know how it happened but for some reason when he agreed with something, everything seemed to run a lot smoother for the government. The people generally agreed and the opposition put up little fuss.

Australia once again glanced at the telegram. England wanted his help. The thought brought up unwanted feelings had he had supposedly crushed years ago. Australia took a deep breath.

"Then Australia is at war," he stated, feeling a swirl of apprehension, which he promptly squashed.

This was his chance to prove to England, the mother country, that he was worth his time and energy. He could look after himself and maybe even help England enough to gain his favor. He was not a thieving child that could be thrown away anymore. He would show the world what he could do.

Absently Australia rubbed the bandage covering his nose.

History

On the 4th of August 1914 Germany invaded neutral Belgium as part of the Schlieffin Plan. This followed a chain of events starting with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo in Bosina.

Australia had two parliament houses: Old Parliament House, which is the one in the story, and the new Parliament House, (built because the older one was too small and decrepit) which is the one that is used now.

Sir Joseph Cook**- **Australia's sixth Prime Minister who left the position just after the outbreak of WW1

5 August 1914 - Prime Minister Joseph Cook states that _"...when the Empire is at war, so also is Australia."_


End file.
